Mists and Ashes
by LightWriter2013
Summary: Mirah is a guardian angel and her cleansing ceremony is approaching; the time when she rids herself of her evil reflection. But her friends are worried for her. Mirah seems to have a connection with the reflections that no one else has. Mirah insists she will go through with the ceremony, but what happens when the reflection is more alive than Notch anticipated, and Mirah falls?


**_Hi! So I got this idea for a sort of one-shot-filled story... thing. :3 Basically I'll write what comes to my head, on a timeline or not. The chapters could meet up end to end, but some will just be random things, or stuff that's future or past... yeah. I'll explain in each chapter what's happening so you all won't be confused. :) Hope you all like it! Youtubers may appear, but I'm not planning on them having huge parts. Maybe an appearance here and there. Anyway, enjoy!_**

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"Mirah! Mirah, come on, we're going to be late!"

"Be patient, Dari! I'm almost done!"

"Well hurry up, or else I'm leaving without you!"

"Just... One... more- OK I'm done!"

From within a modest-sized, oak wood cabin came running a teenage girl, 17 years old, tugging a large, stormy grey feather that stuck out from her hair into place amongst four others of shorter lengths. Her long, black hair fell down her back and over her shoulders, flowing slightly in the warm breeze and reflecting a light purple sheen as she ran to her friend. A simple, yet, beautiful grey dress fit snugly around her torso and flowed out into lighter fabric that usually cascaded down just below her knees, now fluttering around her legs in the air. Normally bare shoulders were covered by a thin scarf that wrapped loosely around her neck, drooping downward in a graceful arch onto her chest. Her bright, sky blue eyes glittered in the bright sun as she lifted her lightly-tanned face to look at her friend, and her snow white wings unfurled slightly in greeting.

"No wonder you took so long; you're wearing five feathers, not the normal two. Do you realize how long it takes for you to get those in?" 19 year-old Dari wondered, smiling playfully while tossing her long, golden bangs from her face and back into its place in her shoulder-length hair. She wore a long, light green dress with yellow flowers patterning the fabric in gentle swirls, bordered with darker green lace. Strips of green ribbon held the dress over her shoulders and more of the same ribbon was tied in her hair, holding back the front-most locks out of her face. Her vibrant green eyes stood out greatly against her white skin as they looked Mirah up and down, eyebrows raising with surprise. "When did you get that dress? Actually, when have you _ever_ had a dress?"

Mirah laughed, looping her arm into Dari's to lead her down the gravel path away form the house. "Just because I have never worn a dress before doesn't mean I never had one."

"But... you _never_ **ever** wear dresses!" Dari exclaimed, jumping up and down slightly with excitement, "Why now?"

Mirah grinned and looked ahead where the trees were thinning and a brightly lit city opened up before them. She had always been a fairly hardcore tomboy and had created a notorious reputation for herself by being so. If any angel needed something hard or dangerous done she was one of the first they asked. When anything competitive arose she was always one to join in, even when facing against the men. Despite her rougher exterior, Mirah was known to be one of the most loyal, most trustworthy angels in the Aether, besides Notch and his fellow gods themselves. If there was one thing everyone knew, however, it was that she never, in her long life as an angel, would ever wear a dress unless absolutely necessary.

So why was she wearing one now?

"It doesn't have anything to do with the fact that it's Keric's purifying ceremony is it?" Dari wondered, teasingly bumping against her friend's shoulder.

Mirah blushed lightly and refused to meet Dari's eyes as she kicked at a rock and sent it skittering over the edge of the cloud and to the world below. "Pfft... no. Why would you ever think that?" she asked with a poor attempt to cover up her embarrassment which only succeeded in making Dari laugh.

"Are you kidding me, Mirah? It's so obvious! Well, for me anyway... I almost couldn't believe my eyes the first time you hugged him," The comment earned Dari a soft hit from a wing, "There's no denying it to me, Mirah. I'm onto you." She poked an accusing finger at her blushing friend who just grinned and pretended to bite at it, forcing her to withdraw. "Keep it a secret? I wanted to look nice for his ceremony, ok?"

Dari wrapped her arm over Mirah's shoulders, folding her white wings so they wouldn't bump against the other angel's wings. "We've been friends since you first started to fly. I won't tell anyone."

Mirah shot her friend a grateful glance before sliding from under her arm and unfurling her wings to the stronger wind of the open sky could fill them. "No way are we going to be late; come one, Dari, lets' get our seats."

The two angels quickly jumped into the air and started to fly to their destination, an open field filled with flowers of all shapes, sizes, and colors, with a large pool of water in the center and white quartz blocks circling in the air above it. It was the cleansing shrine, the place where all purifications took place.

When a young angel turns 18, he or she goes to the shrine and, with the closest friends he or she have and the gods, are cleansed of the one thing that keep them from rising to the next stage of being an angel: their reflection. Every angel has an evil part to themselves that must be separated from their souls. The purifying ceremony splits the two parts apart, revealing the form of the darker half before casting it away to the void where it will eventually die. The ceremony was a huge part of an angel's life and was treated with greatest respect.

When Mirah and Dari landed on the edge of the field to walk to the center- as was custom- they found the other invited angels already waiting, many of which glanced their way as they approached. Mirah could feel the sudden interest flow like a wave towards her from the angels, but she waved them off with a twiddle of her fingers and stepped up next to Dari who had chosen a spot in front of everyone.

Almost as soon as they had settled themselves, though still standing (as was custom), six shadows fell over the large pool of water, one on each hovering platform and one over the small quartz island in the center of the circular pool. A moment later six angels landed lightly on the different blocks, white wings sending gusts of wind that blew Mirah's hair over her face and she brushed the locks away to see.

It wasn't the first ceremony she had attended. Dari's ceremony had been a year before and Mirah was honored the role as supporter- the closest, most trusted friend of the purified angel that stood closest to the pool, ready to help if anything were to happen between the angel and their reflection. Rarely did reflections attack the angels, or the angels collapse from the stress of the separation, but better safe than sorry.

Despite having experienced the ceremony before, Mirah couldn't help but gasp at the sight of the five highest gods in the Aether. Their white wings seemed to glow with a heavenly light that could have been simply the sun reflecting form the feathers' sheen, but the appearance still looked powerful.

Mirah's eyes fell from Notch when Keric landed on the pool island. His short, brown hair gleamed gold in the setting sun and his orange eyes blazed brightly with excitement and apprehension. His usual clothes, a dark green T-shirt, black jeans, and black hoodie were altered slightly; white and gold thread embroidered the ends of his shirt, made a feather on his hoodie, right over his heart, and zig-zagged up the sides of his jeans. Mirah felt herself hold her breath when his eyes rested on her. It was short, but she was sure she could feel something tug at her heart as she got lost in his fiery gaze.

Movement puled Mirah back to the present and she watched as another angel, one wearing all white besides an orange wristband and ringlets around some of his primary feathers, stepped up to the pool and stopping at the water's edge. Keric nodded appreciatively at the young man before looking up to the gods, waiting for them to start.

"Keric, the time has come for you to be purified of the evil that resides in your soul. You have chosen these angels that stand around you as witnesses of your purification. Do you trust them as far as your life depends on it?" Notch spoke, his voice booming over the clearing.

"I do." Keric answered truthfully without the slightest waver in his voice.

"And do they feel the same?"

Keric took a small glace over his friends before looking back up to Notch. "Yes."

"Are you prepared to open your soul to the powers of the Aether and cast away the darkness form your heart?"

Keric nodded. "I am ready."

"Then, by the power of creation and destruction that I posess, I, with the gods around this pool, will free you of your reflection."

As soon as Notch finished the five gods spread their arms and wings out to the sky, barely touching the tips of their feathers to create a perfect circle. From the center grew a bright, glowing light that descended slowly towards Keric. The angel unfurled his wings and held them out as the gods did, looking up to the sky and letting the ball of light rest on his chest. For a second the light stayed where it was, then seemingly melted straight into Keric's chest. Keric gasped, starting to tremble violently but still standing the same position, arms and wings out, head back, and legs spaced a little apart.

Mirah payed careful attention, silently sending her friend strength while clasping her hands together and pressing them against her chin and lips apprehensively. Suddenly something like a black mist started to seep into the air, flowing right from Keric's chest where the ball of light had touched. It flowed like sand in front of him, slowly starting to take shape. Wings sprouted from the main mass, followed quickly by a round head tipped with a long, sharp beak. Legs unfolded form the body, toes ending with long, sharp talons that flashed in the sunset. With a skin-crawling shriek into the air, the crow came to life, opening small, beady eyes.

Immediately Mirah felt the air around her fall heavy with uncertainty. She looked around at the other angels curiously, frowning ever-so-slightly when they were all visibly shaking and staring unblinkingly at the bird. She looked back to the bird, wonder and awe swelling in her mind. The others were treating it like something that was terrifying and dangerous, but, to Mirah, she saw a beautiful creature. It's eyes held an intelligence she was sure only she could see. It's purely black feathers glinted against the sunlight, looking as if they were on fire.

Suddenly its eyes met hers and they stared at each other. Mirah could practically feel something move inside her and the crow's head cocked to the side with interest. Neither of them blinked. The crow and the angel held their stares, both reading the other's thoughts and feelings. Mirah felt captivated by the creature of darkness. It was so strong and proud, and so full of cleverness... so much like Keric, but with a slightly different feel.

Abruptly the crow shrieked into the air, wisps of light and shadow rising like smoke from its body. It flapped wildly in the air before its wings seized up and it fell form the air, vanishing into nothing before it touched the ground.

It was over. The reflection would never return from the void where it had just been sent. Mirah felt her heart twist with regret at the fall of such a stunning beast, but she quickly covered it with the joy of her friend's purification. Above her head the gods flew away silently, and she watched them leave with wide blue eyes until they vanished behind a cloud. Once they were gone, the angels, including Keric, walked silently and respectfully out of the garden. Only when they were many meters away from the entrance did everyone explode with talk.

"Congratulations, Keric!"

"Congrats, man! Now you can have more duties as an angel! D'you think you'll get another kid to watch?"

"Keric! I'm so proud of you!"

The chatter continued, with Keric getting swarmed by the angels who witnessed his purification. Mirah stood back, waiting for the excitement to die down before going in to congratulate her friend. She watched as Dari stumbled out of the mass of angels and towards her, shaking her head in an its-no-use-everyone's-too-excited look.

"That's why I'm waiting here." Mirah laughed, pointing at the grass below her feet.

"Can you believe it? Keric's clean of his reflection," Dari stood next to Mirah, bumping into her shoulder teasingly, "That means you're next in line, Mirah. Whaddaya think your reflection will look like? Go on, take a guess."

Mirah paused to think. Immediately the images of Dari's and Keric's reflections appeared in her mind; snake and crow, both unnaturally beautiful. The images passed to let her mind think up a creature, but nothing she could think of seemed right. "I dunno, Dari."

"Come on, you have to guess." Keric suddenly spoke, making Mirah jump when she realized he was standing right next to her.

"Ah- Um..." she tried to think of any animal or creature that would reflect her. "A... a wolf?" Again it didn't sound right, but Mirah didn't want to change her answer in front of the ten angels listening.

"I bet it's a snake like Dari!" Keric's supporter and a friend of Mirah's guessed.

"Nah. It's gonna be a dragon!" an angel exclaimed jokingly, spreading his arms into the air to exaggerate.

"We'll just have to see," Mirah laughed, "Wait four more months. Then you can tease me if it happens to be a kitten."

The angels laughed, already thinking of jokes they could pull if what she had said turned true. After a few minutes of friendly insults and jokes, Keric's supporter re-directed to topic. "So what's with the dress, Mirah? I thought I was dreaming when I first saw you in that."

"Well, I-... I-..." Mirah fumbled over her words, accidentally tripping on her own feet and bumping into Keric. "Oops, sorry!" Keric grinned, helping Mirah regain her balance. As that happened she knew the other angels were onto her, for a few snickered, and others just stood by and watched with raised eyebrows.

"I could take a guess..." an angel snickered, making Mirah turn red. "No, no, no... that's not... No. Just no," She pulled a small grin to her lips, "You know me enough to know I'm not interested in things like that."

It was obvious no one bought her words. Only Dari, who already knew, seemed un-phased.

"It's a purifying ceremony, guys. Why not dress up for it?" Keric mentioned, saving Mirah, "Hey, let's all head to my house. I think a party's planned to start in an hour there." He grabbed onto the two nearest angels and started to pull them down the hill the group had been talking on.

"We'll be right behind you, Keric. I want to talk with Mirah for a moment." Dari interjected, catching onto Mirah's wing to stop her from following the angels.

"Don't take too long." as Keric finished he jumped into the air, unfurling his wings to fly upwards into a cloud where he vanished. Perplexed, the other angels flew up and started towards another cloud where Keric's house was built hoping that their friends would meet them there. Just as they got out of earshot, Keric appeared and swooped down in front of Mirah. For a second their eyes locked, blue gaze meeting the orange one with curiosity. Mirah opened her mouth to ask what Keric was doing but stopped mid-breath when his lips met hers.

Mirah's eyes opened wide in surprise. His lips felt soft and his breath was warm and smelled of chocolate. His wings wrapped over her shoulder in a warm, feathery hug before he pulled away and looked into her eyes. "I won't tell." he whispered before jumping into the air again, gracefully completing a vertical loop and vanishing into the clouds.

Mirah stared in a daze at the wisps of cloud that remained of Keric's exit, trying to recover from her shock.

"Wow... he sure knows how to make a move," Dari commented, pulling Mirah's attention to her, "But we'll talk about that later. I want to know what happened during the ceremony."

"What?" Mirah asked intelligently, still trying to get her head (theoretically) out of the clouds and focused on her friend. "Don't play dumb with me, Mirah. This is the second time you've done it."

"Hm? Done what?" Mirah asked, her thoughts now completely averted to Dari, "What did I do?"

"It's been the same for both times, when the reflection takes a form. I saw you, Mirah, when my reflection slithered to life. You stared at it like it was the most interesting thing in the world."

"Well, it sort of is. Reflections are some of the most mysterious things about angels, and that was the first time I had seen one," Mirah defended.

"But Keric's crow wasn't new, and you still acted the same," Dari started to pace, something she did when troubled with something, "Mirah your eyes, both times when you meet the reflections' gazes, they... I don't know... They looked different. Like something about you changed."

"Are you OK, Dari? What's-"

"And the reflections looked you in the eye, too," Dari interrupted, "They took interest in you, Mirah!"

"Dari! Calm down!" Mirah shouted, grabbing the angel's shoulders to stop her pacing, "Look, I'm OK, OK? There's nothing wrong with me! I'm the same Mirah you've always known, well, besides the Keric part..." she grinned with the intended joke, but continued when Dari didn't seem to catch it, "Dari, look at me," she pulled her friend's chin over to look at her. Though Mirah was two years younger, she stood a little under an inch to her friend. Once Dari's green eyes met hers, Mirah continued, "If there was anything wrong, I would tell you. You trust me, don't you?" Dari nodded, albeit hesitantly. "Dari, what's wrong? Spit it out."

Dari shook her head, sadness appearing in her face. "You've been having nightmares, Mirah, ever since my ceremony. I hear you through the wall every night. I've tried to wake you, but it's never worked. I've been wanting to ask you about it, but there never seemed to be a good time..." she stroked Mirah's cheek caringly, easily seeing her flinch at the mention of her dreams."You're like a sister to me, Mirah. I thought you trusted me the way I do you."

"I- I do trust you, Dari. I just- I didn't think you needed to know about my silly dreams."

"Mirah... Like you said; I know you. Those dreams aren't 'silly'. You talk like you would to a friend, and laugh, and shout... You screamed once, Mirah. I'm scared for you."

Mirah felt annoyance boil inside her. She obviously didn't want to talk about her dreams with Dari, where she meets someone every night, and that they complete adventures together in her dreams. "Look, they're not important, Dari," Mirah shot, a little too sharply, "I'm going to change then go to the party. I'll meet you there." Without taking time to see Dari's reaction, Mirah flew into the air and away from her friend.

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**_Phew that was long... well, here it is. Plz leave a review, I always love to see that someone likes my writing. Love you all! The next chapter should come soon (I hope). _**

**_Stay awesome!_**

**_-Light_**

**_No one can decide who you are; only you can do that. :)_**


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